


Incentive

by clgfanfic



Category: Soldier of Fortune Inc.
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-12
Updated: 2012-11-12
Packaged: 2017-11-18 11:42:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/560693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clgfanfic/pseuds/clgfanfic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A missing scene from the episode "Broken Play."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Incentive

**Author's Note:**

> Originally published in the zine Ouch! #8 and later in Watch Your Six #1 with Mary Fallon Zane.

At the sound of a soft knock on his doorjamb, ex-Army major, Matthew Shepherd looked up from the paperwork he was trying to complete.  His brown eyes rounded.  "Chance? What're you doing here?  I thought the doctor told you to stay in bed for a couple more days."

The handsome, bald, black man grinned slightly and shrugged one shoulder.  "I'm feeling better, sir," he offered as an explanation.

Shepherd gestured for the man to enter and take a seat.  He did.  Despite the fact that he and ex-lieutenant Jason Walker were no longer members of the Army's elite Delta Force, Chance still treated him like they were.  "There something I can do for you?"

Chance drew in a deep breath, held it a moment and let it out in a broken sigh.  "Yes, sir," he replied softly, running his hands down the tops of his sweatpant-clad thighs.  "I need to talk."

Matt sat up straighter.  It sounded serious.  He set his pen aside and leaned back, giving the man his full attention.

The pilot leaned back, then sat forward again, trying to find a comfortable position.  Given the number of bruises that decorated his back and torso, it was obviously impossible.  Chance settled on the bent forward position, his elbows resting on his thighs, his hands clasped loosely between his knees.  "I talked," he began bluntly.

"Talked?" Shepherd echoed.

"I gave you and the others up to Spazek," he continued, his tone making it clear that his throat was tight with emotion.

The major's eyes narrowed and his brow wrinkled in concern.  "Why?"

Chance snorted softly.  "Been asking myself the same thing for the last four days," he replied.  "I had my reasons.  Thought you'd better hear them, then decide if you still want me on the team."

Matt nodded.  He would have bet almost anything on the fact that Chance would never talk, never break under normal interrogation procedures.  The man was too strong, too focused, too at peace with himself to allow pain to break him.  It was clear from his injuries that Chance had taken one hell of a beating, but that kind of pain he was familiar with.  And Vlady Spazek and his men had only held the pilot for a few hours.  There was no reason why a lead pipe should have forced the man to talk in that period of time.  Something else was going on, and Shepherd wanted to know what it was.

"So what happened?" he asked the black man.

Chance's lips pressed into a thin line and he looked away, anger and something else playing across the expressions on his face.  When he regained control of those emotions he looked back and said, "Margo."

Matt's eyes rounded a second time.  Margo Vincent, an ex-CIA field operative, was the only woman on the team, and the one Chance had escorted to a meeting with Spazek, a Bosnian arms dealer who, they had hoped, had had information on a convicted war criminal, General Yunger.  As it turned out, Spazek didn't know where the general was, but he was willing to take their three million dollars for his time.

"Tell me," Shepherd urged.  Chance stared at the floor as he reviewed the mission, all things Matt already knew, but the major guessed that he was just building up to what he really needed to say.

"When we got to Spazek's I could see Margo was nervous.  She told us before we left that she didn't trust the man," the pilot said, getting closer to what Matt was interested in.  "As soon as I met him, I understood why.  The man's a user, Major," Chance stated, looking up to meet Shepherd's non-judgmental gaze.  He silently wondered if it would remain the same once he'd heard the whole story.

Matt nodded.  "I got that impression from what Margo said."

"Well, he's also a class-one asshole," the black man continued.  "And the guys he's got working for him are nothing more than hired meat."

A small smile played across Shepherd's lips.  "Let me guess, you, uh, couldn't help pushing a few buttons, right?" he asked.  He knew all too well that Chance never suffered fools lightly.

The black man flashed him a brief grin and shook his head.  "Looking back now, I know it wasn't the smartest thing – making one of Spazek's guys look like a fool, but, man, he deserved it.  They were arrogant, stupid bullies.  And I have no patience for bullies."  He paused, a slight chill causing his shoulders to quake.  "They were just plain mean."

Matt remained silent, giving the man the time he needed to continue at his own pace.  When Chance appeared to be stymied, he stood, asking, "Want some coffee?"

The black man nodded, his eyes haunted.

"Be right back," Matt promised.  Leaving Chance in his office, he walked out into the large basement of the Silver Star Hotel, their current base of operations.  Making his way over to the kitchen, he poured two cups from the half-empty pot.

Sniffed the steam, curling off the surface of the coffee in his cup, Matt decided that it hadn't reached lethal concentrations yet.

Carrying the two cups back to his office, he paused and handed one to Chance, who accepted it, but made no move to drink it.  Walking to his desk, Matt sat down again and asked, "Ready to go on?"

The black man nodded.  Staring into his cup, he said, "I misjudged, pushed too far.  I didn't think they'd risk the three million, but I guess it didn't mean as much to them as we expected.  One of Spazek's sidekicks got the drop on me with a piece of pipe.  Beat me into the ground."

"And Margo?" Matt asked.

"She went for Spazek, but the same guy whaling on me hit her on the back of the neck, knocked her out."  Chance stopped, took a deep breath, then forced himself to try the coffee.  His face twisted.

"Yeah, it's too old," Matt admitted.

The black man leaned forward and set the cup on Shepherd's desk, then settled back, saying, "By then a couple other flunkies had showed up.  They pounded me pretty good."

"The doctor said your bruises suggested that someone, and I quote here, beat the shit out of you," Matt challenged.

Chance snorted again.  "Guess the man knew what he was talking about, because, yeah, they did.  They also figured that we wouldn't come alone," he added, then glanced up at Shepherd.  There was still no condescension in the man's eyes.  "They wanted to know who else was there, and where you were.  I didn't tell them… not at first."

"Why did you have to?" Matt asked.

Chance sat back, leaning heavily against the chair.  Shepherd hadn't asked "When did you?" or "Why did you?"  He was assuming that there was a good reason for what he'd done, and he was right.

"Chance," Matt said, then asked again, "why did you have to?"

"It was Margo…"

 

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

 

_He wasn't sure how long the beating had lasted, but he was grateful that it had finally come to an end.  His entire back and torso burned from the repeated strikes from the lead pipe.  He could sense the blood already beginning to pool under his skin, making him feel bloated and sluggish.  He kept his eyes closed, hoping that they'd assume that he was unconscious, but Spazek wasn't buying it._

_"Get him on his feet," the man snapped in heavily accented English._

_Hands roughly grabbed Chance's arms, hauling him up.  He jerked away from the men, deciding that he'd stand or fall on his own.  He glared defiantly at the man._

_Valdy smiled.  "You are a stubborn man," he said, "but you_ will _tell me what I want to know."_

_"I don't think so," Chance hissed, blood flecking across his swollen lips with each word._

_Vlady's eyes sparked with the challenge.  "Are you a betting man, whatever your name is?"_

_Chance held his tongue, refusing to be baited._

_"Because if you are, I have a wager for you.  I will bet you that you will tell me your name, as well as the names and locations of your friends who are out there, waiting for you.  And you will tell me all this within the hour."_

_Chance's eyes flashed dangerously, but there was little he could do or say._

_Vlady spoke swiftly to the men in Serbo-Croat.  Two of them grabbed Chance's arms.  The third, Alexi, the man who had wielded the pipe, struck the pilot a vicious blow to his lower back._

_Chance's knees buckled and he sagged in the two men's grips.  The next blow was to his side.  Lights exploded in front of his eyes a moment before he fell into unconsciousness._

 

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

 

Matt shook his head, the muscles along his jaw twitching in anger and frustration.  "You're lucky they didn't kill you."

Chance nodded.  "I know.  But it wasn't over, sir.  It was just getting started."

 

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

 

_A bucketful of cold water struck Chance in the face.  He jerked awake and grunted as his muscles spasmed in response to the quick movement.  Wiping his face with one hand, he glowered up at the man who stood over him, smirking._

_"Come," the white-blond Alexi snapped, slapping the length of pipe he'd used on the black man earlier against his palm._

_Chance struggled to his feet, vertigo threatening to force him to sit down again.  He drew in a pair of deep breaths, ignoring the searing pain they sent through his chest.  At least they helped clear his head._

_The blond motioned for Chance to proceed him, and the pilot complied.  In the hall, he looked back to see which direction he should go.  Alexi pointed to the left._

_Chance squared his shoulders and started down the narrow passage, wondering if he could get the drop on the man before his friends arrived.  An open door at the end of the hall suggested that he would have to act swiftly if he wanted to try.  But as soon as he neared the entry he knew escape was impossible, at least for the moment._

_He stopped in the doorjamb, but Alexi shoved him into the room.  Chance ground his teeth together to stop the epithet that exploded into the back of his throat.  He was in a bedroom, an old double bed taking up the majority of the space in the room.  On top of the faded covers lay Margo, unconscious and naked.  Vlady Spazek sat next to her, his fingers slowly stroking though her auburn hair._

_"How nice of you to join us," Vlady said, his gaze raking hotly over Margo's bare skin._

_"If you've touched her," Chance managed to growl._

_Vlady's eyes rounded in mock surprise.  "What do you take me for, Mister…?"_

_Chance felt his jaw muscles jerking as he said, "Walker, Jason Walker."_

_"Well, Mr. Walker, what do you take me for, a – what do you Americans call it? – a rapist?"_

_"Looks that way to me," Chance hissed, his black eyes locked on Spazek's blue as the man reached lower, gently stroking one of Margo's breasts._

_Vlady chuckled softly.  "No, Mr. Walker, I would never do such a uncivilized thing.  Not when I know Margo will willingly give herself up to me to get the information you seek.  And just as well I know that you will now tell who has accompanied you to Bosnia."_

_Chance's lips pressed into a thin line as he tried to decide just how far the man would take this.  He studied Margo's face, desperately searching for any signs that she was actually conscious.  He found none._

_When he refused to answer, Vlady snapped his fingers.  Alexi stepped around from behind Chance and walked over to the bed._

_"Oh course, Alexi is not the same kind of gentleman that I am," Vlady said._

_Alexi leered down at Margo, then reached out, running the end of the lead pipe from her mid-thigh to her knee.  He pressed the pipe against the inside of her knee and used it to move her legs further open._

_"Stop," Chance demanded, "or so help me I'll kill you."_

_Alexi looked to his boss, the amusement in his eyes clearly visible.  Vlady nodded and the blond took a step back._

_A hand still playing with her breast, Vlady looked up at Chance and asked, "You have something you want to tell me, Mr. Walker?"_

_A thin red veil clouded Chance's vision, but the threat was clear – either he played along and gave the man the information he wanted, or Margo would suffer the consequences. He swallowed once, forcing the bile that had climbed up the back of his throat back down.  "There's three of them," he managed._

_"Three?"  Vlady asked, his head cocking to one side.  "Only three?"  He squeezed Margo's breast hard, drawing a soft whimper from the still unconscious women._

_"Three," Chance snapped.  "That's it.  I'm telling you the truth."_

_"Who?" Vlady asked, a smile twisting up the ends of his mouth as he returned to stroking Margo, his hand moving further down to her stomach._

_"Matthew Shepherd," Chance said, nearly choking on the words._

_"And?"_

_"C.J. Yates."_

_"Hurry, Mr. Walker, the hour is almost up, and we did have a wager, did we not?"_

_"Benny Ray Riddle."_

_"Who is in charge?" the man demanded._

_"Shepherd," Chance replied._

_"And this Shepherd thought that the five of you could find and kill General Yunger?"_

_Chance studied Spazek's poorly dyed hair, wishing he had just one of his knives. He'd cheerfully scalp the man where he sat.  "With the information we're paying you for, yes," he snapped._

_Vlady chuckled again.  "It will take more than money for me to give you Yunger," he replied softly, his gaze drinking in Margo's nakedness._

_"She'd never willingly sleep with a dog like you," Chance countered._

_Vlady laughed louder this time.  "Would you care to make another wager, Mr. Walker?"_

 

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

 

"You think she did?" Matt asked softly.  "Sleep with him, I mean."

Chance nodded.  "I know she did, sir."  He paused a moment, then added, "But I also know that she thought she was working the information out of the bastard.  She didn't know he was playing her like that.  By that time they'd taken me down to the cellar and worked me over again.  They left me down there to die, sir.  She was all alone up there with that bastard."

Matt smiled inwardly.  Leave it to Chance to defend Margo's actions and honor, even if she didn't need either.  She'd done what she'd felt she'd had to, to ensure the success of the mission.  It was her choice, even if he knew it couldn't have been an easy one.  Besides, she must have known something was wrong when she woke up without her clothes and Chance was missing.

"Chance, do you honestly think any of us would've done any different?" he asked.

The black man leaned forward again, his eyes bright with conviction.  "Sir, there was no way I was going to let that happen to her."

Matt nodded.  "I understand.  Hell, Chance the rest of us would've done the same thing to spare her that."

"But I gave you up," the black man countered.  "Look, I respect Margo, she's a damn-fine operator, but—"

Shepherd held up a hand, stopping the man mid-sentence.  "Don't say it," he cautioned.  "Not yet.  Think about this first; if it had been me, or Benny Ray, or C.J. lying there, with the same implied threat, what would you've done?"

Chance opened his mouth to reply, then shut it again.  A moment later he sighed loudly. "Damn it."

"Wouldn't've changed a thing, would it?" Matt asked.

Chance shook his head.  "No, sir."

"Look," Shepherd said before the pilot could say anything more, "sometimes you've just gotta play for time.  It might not be pretty, or conform to the rules we think we ought to play by, but it gets the job done.  It got both of you out of a bad situation alive.  Chance, you did the only thing you could, given the circumstances."

Relief washed over the black man's face as he studied Shepherd's eyes.  The man was telling the truth.  "Thank you, sir."

Matt grinned.  "Nothing to thank me for," he replied.  "Now, don't you think you ought to get home and get some rest?"

Chance shook his head.  "Major, I was going stir-crazy out at the field all by myself."

Shepherd could appreciate the problem.  He hated lying around in bed all alone. "Why don't I send C.J. out when he gets back?" he suggested.  "Give you someone to order around, make you feel better."

Chance grinned.  "Yeah, that might do the trick.  Where'd he go?"

Matt frowned slightly.  "I'm not sure.  He was mumbling something about it being 'harder than it looked.'"

Chance nodded, completely understanding why the major hadn't pursued it.  With C.J. you could never be sure what the man was up to – and most of the time, you really didn't want to know.

"Chance," Matt said, stopping the man before he headed out the door, "you think she's all right?  You think she'll need to talk about this?"

"I think she already has, sir," Chance offered.

"She did?" Shepherd asked, surprised.

"Given the look on Benny Ray's face, not to mention the way he was going after the body bag when I got here, I'd say she's already talked to him."

Shepherd's eyes went wide.  "Benny Ray?" he repeated.

"Yes, sir."

"But I would've thought she'd talk to you," Matt countered.

"Too close to the whole thing would be my guess," the black man offered.  "My guess is, she won't bring it up with me at all.  And to be perfectly honest, that would suit me just fine. I don't know what I'd say if she did."

 _Then why didn't she talk to me?_ Matt asked himself silently.  But he already knew the answer.  They'd had a relationship a long time ago, and she wouldn't want any old feelings getting in the way of their current working relationship.  She also wouldn't want to risk her place with them.  Not that he'd even considered taking her off the team.  It was true that she faced different dangers than the rest of them, but that was part of the price she paid for what they did.  It wasn't her fault, just a fact.

But Benny Ray?

"That surprises you, doesn't it?" Chance asked, his expression amused.

Matt arched his eyebrows and shrugged.  "Yeah, I guess it does."

"They're tight, Major.  She trusts him."

"I hope she trusts all of us."

Chance grinned, hearing the faintest strains of jealousy in the man's voice.  "She does, but they've got something special.  I think she's let him adopt her."

"Adopt?"

Another grin flashed across the pilot's face.  "You know, he's getting the chance to play big brother and she's enjoying being a little sister."

It was Matt's turn to smile.  "Yeah, okay, I can see that."  He looked up at the black man, searching his face for any signs of lingering guilt or hesitation.  "You clear on where we stand?"

He nodded.  "Yeah.  Thanks."

"Good," Matt replied.  "Now, get back to bed.  I want you good to go as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir," Chance replied.  "Don't forget to send C.J. over.  Tell him to bring some spare clothes, too."

Matt grinned.  "Will do.  Just as soon as I get what he owes me."

"Owes you, sir?"

"Cake," Shepherd explained.  "The man's gotta bake me a cake."

Deciding this was another one that was better left alone, Chance headed for the door again.

"Chance," Matt called.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for talking to me."

He nodded and headed over to call a cab to take him home.  He was already planning what chores he could get C.J. to do for him…

 


End file.
